


10:26 AM

by shanahane



Series: The world where Bruce went to therapy [4]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Nightwing (Comics), Teen Titans - All Media Types, Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Batbrothers (DCU), Batfamily (DCU), Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent, Bruce went to therapy instead of becoming Batman, Canon Temporary Character Death, Dick Grayson Needs a Hug, Dick Grayson is a Good Brother, Drama, Family, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Injuries, alternative universe - no capes, no beta we die like jason
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:48:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29025222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shanahane/pseuds/shanahane
Summary: When Bruce doesn't come back from a business trip, Dick takes it upon himself to hold his family together.What he learns, is that sometimes you have to let things fall apart in order to build them back up again.
Relationships: Dick Grayson/Wally West, Tim Drake & Dick Grayson & Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Tim Drake & Dick Grayson & Jason Todd & Damian Wayne
Series: The world where Bruce went to therapy [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2096913
Comments: 18
Kudos: 279





	10:26 AM

**Author's Note:**

> WARNINGS FOR:  
> Jason's language  
> Minor injury/blood 
> 
> This can be read as a companion piece to R/DontMessWithTheWaynes but works as a one-off, too. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy this self-indulgent angst that I wrote instead of applying for a job.

When Bruce doesn’t text them that he’s on the plane, Dick gets a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. 

\-- 

_“What’s a business trip?”_

_Bruce chuckles as he folds a suit jacket into his luggage. “It’s when I have to travel to work somewhere other than where I normally do.”_

_“Oh.”_

_Dick is lying on his stomach on Bruce’s huge bed (which somehow looks even bigger with Dick on it), watching as Bruce packs his bags. He hadn’t seemed too upset when Bruce told him about the last minute travel plans but had followed Bruce around the house since then, only leaving him alone to use the bathroom._

_“Where are you going then?” he asks._

_“Frankfurt. It’s in Germany.”_

_“Can I come?”_

_It sounds nonchalant but Bruce can hear the underlying hope in Dick’s voice. “Frankfurt’s boring,” he says. “Besides, you have school.”_

_“I can learn on my own! I’m really good at learning,” Dick says._

_“That you are,” Bruce says and ruffles Dick's hair, earning a squeal. “I promise, if and when I go somewhere more interesting and it doesn’t jeopardize your education, I’ll bring you along.”_

_“You_ **_promise_ ** _promise?”_

_“I’ll triple promise.”_

_“Okay,” Dick smiles. “Germany is far, though.”_

_Bruce raises his eyebrows. “You know where Germany is?”_

_“I’m 9,” Dick says, rolling his eyes. “And one of the clowns had a globe in this trailer. He used to let me borrow it.”_

_After almost a year of living with Bruce, Dick doesn’t automatically get sad when he talks about the circus anymore. Still, Bruce’s heart clenches._

_“Have you ever been to Romania?” Dick then asks._

_“No, not yet.”_

_“Can I come if you go there?”_

_“Of course.”_

_“Even if it jepradasises my education?”_

_“Jeopardize,” Bruce corrects him gently. “But yes, even then.”_

_“Cool!” Dick flips on the bed so that his head is hanging off it at an awkward looking angle. “Take the Superman tie!” he tells Bruce, who throws the said tie at his face with a very final ‘no.’_

\--

Dick gets a phone call from Lucius at 10:26 AM, and Dick’s world stops spinning. 

_“Bruce never came back to the hotel last night.”_

The only thing that stops Dick from buying a ticket and flying to Japan with the next available flight is the fact that he has three brothers who are expecting Bruce to be home in a few hours and will soon realize that something is not right. 

“Dick?” Dick jumps. Wally’s looking at him, frowning. “Babe? You okay?” 

“I…” Dick chokes. “Bruce, he’s…” 

Wally’s eyes widen when Dick doesn’t finish immediately, most likely assuming the worst. “Shit, he’s…?” 

“...missing,” Dick finally manages to say. “He’s missing. He never… He went out, never came back, didn’t check out. Didn’t show up at the airport. Lucius, he… He’s still there, checking hospitals…” 

Dick’s hand is shaking so hard that the coffee cup he’s holding falls and shatters. He curses and moves to clean but then Wally’s there, holding him, shushing him, telling him to breathe, and only then does Dick notice that he’s not. 

“Shh, hey. Hey, you’re okay. Just breathe, babe. Breathe.” 

It takes a while for Dick to breathe steadily enough to stop shaking. The panic, however, does not disappear and it makes it impossible for him to sit down, as Wally is instructing him to do. He has to move to keep himself functional so he shrugs out of Wally’s hold and starts to pace. 

“I have to call Jason,” he says. “And I… I have to go to the Manor. Bruce is supposed to be home in a couple of hours, Tim and Damian will… They’ll know, soon. I have to be there.”

“Okay,” Wally says. “I’m driving.” 

Dick doesn’t protest, if only because his legs feel like they might give out at any minute. They never clean the broken coffee cup or wipe the liquid off the floor, they just change and leave. 

Jason sounds groggy when Dick calls him but seems to keep his composure quite a lot better than Dick. He curses and says he’ll head for the Manor, too, before abruptly hanging up. The rest of the ride is spent in very loud silence. 

“Master Dick! And Master Wallace. This is a surprise! I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow,” Alfred says when Dick and Wally appear in the kitchen where Tim and Damian are just finishing brunch. 

“Are you here to welcome Bruce back or are you here for free food?” Tim asks. 

“Tt. If anyone’s here for free food it’s Wallace,” Damian comments. 

“We’re just about to go get Master Bruce from the airport. You’re welcome to anything that’s left over, of course,” Alfred says. 

Wally takes a hold of Dick’s hand and squeezes. 

“Yeah,” Dick says quietly. “About Bruce…” 

\--

_His fellow business class passengers do not appreciate two excited children in their presence but Bruce’s status as the ‘undeniably wealthiest passenger on the plane’ keeps them from voicing their opinion. Still, when Jason spends the 15 minutes it takes to board economy class testing how far his seat reclines, Bruce vows to fly private next time he takes both of the boys with him - Global warming be damned._

_“Jason,” he scolds the eight-year-old gently when Jason demonstrates, loudly, how he can stretch to his full length and still has plenty of room to adjust._

_“Planes are cool,” Jason declares. “We should get one.”_

We have one _, Bruce thinks privately, but doesn’t say it. He tells Jason to put his seat back up and accepts the glass of orange juice offered by a flight attendant._

_Dick, as active and talkative as he usually is, had been so at awe about his new experience that he had stayed quiet and simply observed his surroundings the first time Bruce had brought him along to a business trip. That had been almost four years ago, Bruce realizes. Dick is 13 now and an experienced flyer, not even considered a child by the aviation world anymore. He is overly amused by his brother’s excitement and, to Bruce’s dismay, does nothing to discourage Jason’s curiosity. He seems to at least sense the growing resentment of other passengers and manages to guide Jason’s attention to what’s happening outside, which apparently is fascinating enough that Jason falls quiet._

_Once in the air, Bruce sends his secretary a mental thank you for booking them an evening flight. When he’s allowed to recline his seat again, Jason abruptly falls asleep, all the excitement having drained him. Dick covers him with a blanket while Bruce carefully takes the well-loved copy of The Hobbit out of his hand._

_“Wanna watch a movie?” Dick asks quietly._

_“You should try to get some sleep, too,” Bruce replies. “It’s a long flight.”_

_“I’m not tired yet,” Dick protests and Bruce has a feeling that has something to do with all the pre-flight sugar Bruce had unwisely let him consume._

_He agrees to one movie and allows Dick to choose. A moment later he’s watching Empire Strikes Back. They get a late-night meal (“No, Dick, it’s almost 11 PM, you’re not having a coke.) and eat it while watching, after which Dick starts to yawn. He stubbornly keeps watching the movie but gives in and closes his eyes just as Han and Leia make it to the Cloud City. Bruce reclines his seat for him, turns off the movie, and once he’s sure that Dick is asleep, tries to find a comfortable position, too._

_He never manages to fall into a deep sleep in a plane, so it’s no surprise that he snaps awake when he feels a light tap on his shoulder._

_“Jason?” he mumbles when opens his eyes. “What’s wrong, buddy?”_

_Wordlessly, Jason points to the window. Bruce gets up a little and sees a lightning flash in the distance. It’s actually quite beautiful, but Jason looks more worried than impressed._

_“It’s okay,” Bruce tells him. “The pilot knows how to avoid storms.”_

_Jason nods slowly and lies back in his seat. He glances at Dick, who is snoring softly. Bruce tries to appear as relaxed as possible as well in an attempt to silently convince Jason that there’s nothing to worry about._

_It takes a while, but finally, exhaustion wins again and Jason’s eyelids shut. Another minute or two, and his breathing evens out. Bruce smiles a little and reaches out to adjust the blanket and push back Dick’s hair from his forehead. Neither boy reacts._

_Bruce really should bring them along more often._

_\--_

Every day that goes by without news is more frustrating than the last. 

Dick moves back to the Manor while Jason alternates between the Manor and the penthouse, which is closer to his school’s campus. He seems to bury himself in schoolwork, possibly in order to avoid thinking about what’s happening. Dick doesn’t blame him. 

He wishes he could avoid thinking about it, too. 

But he can’t, because he has to stay on top of the investigation. He can’t, because he’s the one Bruce’s colleagues keep calling for updates. He can’t, because he keeps getting interview requests from newspapers and tabloids. 

He can’t, because Tim and Damian don’t. 

“Tim, you need to eat,” he says one evening when he finds his brother, again, tapping on his laptop when he should be having dinner with the rest of them. 

“I’m fine,” Tim replies without looking up. 

“What are you even doing?” Dick asks. “You’re excused from school for another week.” 

“I’m going to find him.” 

Dick’s heart jumps in his chest, painfully. “Tim…” 

“He was in _Tokyo_! He can’t just go missing in a city like Tokyo.” 

Yet, he is missing, Dick wants to say but doesn’t. “You know what Luc…” 

“Yeah, that he went exploring on his own like he always does still! They had an early flight, he would have been stupid to go too far! I’m going to find him. I will.” His furious clicking and tapping are so loud that Dick almost misses the quiet: “He promised.” 

Dick sighs. He wants to argue, doesn’t want to encourage false hope. At the same time, he doesn’t want to be the one to tell Tim it’s hopeless. That what Tim is doing hurts Dick because Dick knows he won’t find anything. 

Wordlessly, Dick leaves, gets Tim’s plate from the dining room, and brings it to him. “Eat,” he says and sits down on Tim’s bed to show that he won’t leave until he’s satisfied that Tim won’t collapse from low blood sugar. 

Tim picks up the fork and starts to absentmindedly eat while never looking away from his screen. Dick watches him eat about half before pushing the plate away and decides not to argue for Tim to eat more. He squeezes Tim’s shoulder, takes the plate, and leaves again. 

Alfred sighs when he sees the uneaten food but takes the plate from Dick anyway and brings it to the sink. Jason has disappeared and Damian is still pushing his food around, taking a little bite every now and then. 

“Your turn now, Master Dick,” Alfred says. 

Right. 

Dick has yet to eat dinner himself. 

The food is just as delicious as always, and Dick appreciates Alfred’s attempt at normalcy. He has to force down every bite but wants to show a good example and eats everything. It’s a small victory when Damian seems to follow his example. 

Dick’s phone vibrates with a massage. Wally tells him ‘I’m on my way’ and it manages to bring a small smile on Dick’s lips. Wally - sweet, amazing Wally - has been driving the two hours from Blüdhaven to Gotham every time he has a day off the next day, no questions asked. He had not protested when Dick had told him he’d move back to the Manor for a while nor has he once complained about spending all his free time there. 

Dick wonders if that will still be the case if this arrangement becomes permanent. 

“Damian,” Dick says in a sudden burst of inspiration. “Do you maybe want to call a friend over?”

“Who?” Damian asks. 

“I don’t know. Jon, maybe? Or Raven?” 

“Tt. What’s the point? They’d just try to distract me,” Damian says. 

“Maybe that would not be such a bad thing,” Dick replies. 

“I’m not a child!” _Yes, you are_. “I don’t need to be coddled! Especially not by the son of the idiot who has superpowers and still can’t find Father!” 

Damian gets up and leaves with a huff. Dick feels a lump form in his throat and takes a shaky breath to collect himself. 

“I advise you not to take it personally,” Alfred tells him. “It was a good idea.” 

“He’s right, though,” Dick sighs. “Even Superman couldn’t find him.” 

The help from Justice League had been unexpected but welcomed, nonetheless. Their involvement had brought Dick’s hopes up momentarily, only for them to be crushed beyond repair when Superman had come back with nothing. 

That, if nothing else, had brought Dick to the painful conclusion that they had next to no chance of finding anything other than maybe answers. 

“I think he’s dead,” he says quietly to Wally’s shoulder that night. 

A little part of him doesn’t believe it.

It’s weird how that part causes him the most pain. 

\-- 

_When Bruce tells Tim he has to go on a short business trip, the boy has a full-on panic attack. He keeps repeating ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry’ and ‘I’ll be good’ over and over until he can barely breathe. Bruce gives himself a firm, mental kick in the head as he tries to calm Tim down with ‘it’s only a few days’ and ‘I’ll back before you know it’. It only works when he blurts out ‘you can come with me’, which causes Tim to pause, blink, and then follow Bruce’s instructions to breathe._

_And so, two days later, Tim is sitting next to him on what Dick has dubbed ‘Wayne Force One’. The older boys had not been very interested in a trip to Atlanta and had stayed home and Bruce can only wonder what kind of chaos awaits him when he returns._

_“I have to work,” he tells Tim. “So I’m sorry if this will be a bit boring. You can help yourself to anything to eat or drink and if you behave well enough, you can even visit the cockpit. Just don’t bother anyone, okay?”_

_Tim nods, swinging his legs. Small as he is, he looks a bit silly on the enormous seat. The few colleagues that have joined the trip all offered him smiles and greetings when they boarded and Tim had been the perfect example of a little gentleman. He seems relaxed and happy, even though Bruce has told him numerous times now that they won’t have time for anything fun._

_The boy doesn’t complain once._

_He tags along to meetings where he stays in the corner with his tablet. He endures long lunches and dinners with people even Bruce considers boring. He watches TV quietly or plays with his computer when Bruce still has to work in their hotel room in the evening._

He’s just happy that I didn’t leave him behind, _Bruce thinks and his heart breaks._

_On the last day, he carves out a few hours for them to see the sights. He takes Tim to the Georgia Aquarium where Tim spends most of his time trying to take ‘the perfect picture’ of each animal. They have an early dinner in a diner where the relaxed atmosphere prompts Tim to be more animated than Bruce has seen him during the trip. It makes Bruce smile and he gladly listens to Tim describe all the fish and other animals they have just seen a moment ago._

_When they come back, Dick scoops Tim into his arms and asks: “Did you have fun?”_

_Tim says: “Yes!” as if they have just returned from Disneyland._

_He has to take Tim along a few more times until Tim is assured that 1) he will not be left alone and 2) Bruce will always come back._

_\--_

Damian destroys Alfred’s rose bushes one morning. 

There are no signs that warn anyone about what he’s about to do. It’s Sunday, they are eating breakfast, and suddenly Damian simply gets up and walks out to the garden with Titus on his heels. It’s not unusual, no one even blinks. 

When he doesn’t come back in 30 minutes, Dick goes out to find him. He momentarily freezes when he sees Damian, standing in the middle of torn roses, his hands bleeding. Titus whines and in the next second, Dick is by Damian’s side, guiding him back into the house by his arm. 

Damian doesn’t protest but doesn’t react in any other way either. 

“Oh my!” Alfred exclaims as they come in. 

“I need the first-aid kit,” Dick says as if it’s not obvious. 

Damian reacts to this and tries to yank himself free. “No.” 

“We have to clean your cuts, Damian.” 

“I can do it myself!” 

“Dames…” 

“Shut up!” 

With enough force to make Dick stumble, Damian manages to free himself and flees the kitchen. He apparently runs into Jason, because Dick hears a faint ‘what the fuck?’ from the living room. With a shaky breath, Dick sinks into a chair and puts his face into his hands. 

He only moves when Alfred places a cup of tea in front of him. 

“I can’t do this,” Dick mumbles. 

“You are doing the best you can, my boy,” Alfred says. “And may I say that you are doing a very good job. You might not see it but you are.” 

Dick shakes his head. “Damian practically annihilated your roses,” he says. “I didn’t even… God, how did I not…?” 

“You are all hurting, Master Dick. There’s no shame in not always being alert.” 

Tears burn in Dick’s eyes but he tries to blink them away. “You are hurting, too,” he says and it’s not a question. “And yet you haven’t even missed one meal.” 

“It’s my way of dealing with it,” Alfred says. “You all have your own. And though I wish Master Damian’s way wasn’t so destructive, there’s no reason for us to blame ourselves for it.”

Alfred’s tone is so reassuring that Dick finds himself nodding. He gets up to go find Damian and passes Tim and Jason in the living room. Tim is, again, on his laptop while Jason is destroying aliens on the TV. He’s using a little more force on the controller than what Dick thinks is necessary. 

“Damian?” he calls out when he reaches his brother’s room. “Damian, I just want to make sure you’re okay.” 

He doesn’t receive an answer. He knows he’s risking his little brother’s wrath but pushes the door open anyway. The room is empty, but the door of the ensuite bathroom that Damian shares with… Bruce… is open and Dick hears the water running. 

“Dames?” he says when he finds Damian sitting on the toilet seat with Titus’s head resting on his thigh. His left hand is wrapped and he’s clumsily trying to wrap his right one, too. “Can I please help?” 

“I cleaned them,” Damian says. 

“That’s good.” 

Damian struggles for a moment longer before sighing and holding his right hand out. Dick takes it as the invitation that it is and starts to gently wrap the gauze around the hand. 

“I don’t know what happened,” Damian admits quietly. 

“That’s fine.” 

“No, it’s not. I don’t lose control like that. Ever.” 

“Has your dad ever been missing before?” Dick asks. He uses a little tape to keep the gauze in place. “Don’t be too hard on yourself, Dames.” 

“I’m just…” 

“What?” Dick prompts. 

“Angry.” 

“Yeah,” Dick sighs. “I get it.” 

“I just want to know what happened.” 

“Me, too.” 

“Do you think we ever will?” 

“I don’t know,” Dick says honestly. “I hope so.” 

“Hm.” 

Damian little hum sounds so much like Bruce that Dick has to fight back tears. Slowly, carefully, he pulls Damian into a hug. Damian doesn’t move to hug him back but doesn’t fight him off either. 

\--

_“You have school.”_

_“School is pointless.”_

_“It is not.”_

_“Wayne Enterprises is my birthright. It’s only logical that I follow you on your business trips.”_

_Bruce sighs. No seven year old should talk the way Damian does. It’s both infuriating and heartbreaking in almost equal measure._

_Right now, Bruce is mostly irritated._

_“Damian. I really don’t want to fight about this.”_

_“Then don’t. Take me with you.”_

_“Da…”_

_“Aww, but I’d miss you!”_

_Bruce turns to see Dick leaning into the doorframe. He’s grinning like he’s finding this whole exchange entertaining._

_“Tt. Don’t be childish, Richard.”_

_“What? It’s true!” Dick says._

_“Timothy goes with you often,” Damian says to Bruce, ignoring Dick._

_“He used to when he first came to live with us,” Bruce admits. “He was scared I was leaving him behind for good.”_

_“So if I acted like a baby, you would let me join you?”_

_“Don’t talk that way about Tim,” Dick says sternly. “He had his reasons.”_

_Damian sticks his nose up and does not look pleased or convinced. Bruce continues to pack, trying to ignore the hole Damian is burning on his back with his eyes._

_“Come on, Dames, we’ll have so much fun with me babysitting you!” Dick says._

_“I do_ **_not_ ** _need a babysitter,” Damian says without missing a beat. “And if I did, I’d prefer Pennyworth.”_

_“You wound me,” Dick chuckles. “I only have three days before I have to go back to school myself, are you really going to be gone that whole time?”_

_“Guilting me won’t work.”_

_“What about bribing?”_

_“Bribing?” Bruce repeats at the same time as Damian says: “Keep going.”_

_“Well, you know how we’ve talked about maybe getting you a dog? What better opportunity than this when Bruce will not be there to try to convince you to get the smallest one?”_

_Bruce glares at Dick and Dick smirks back. It’s true that they’ve only been waiting for the perfect time to get Damian a dog that he so very much wants but Bruce would be lying if he said he had not been planning to do exactly what Dick had just said._

_“You’d take me to the shelter?” Damian asks._

_“Yup. And you get to pick exactly the one you want, no questions asked or opinions given,” Dick promises him._

_“That… seems acceptable,” Damian says slowly. “Tomorrow then,” he adds before turning to tell Bruce: “You will take me with you to learn the way of your business one day.”_

_“One day,” Bruce confirms._

_“Very well. 10 AM sharp, Richard.”_

_With that, Damian leaves._

_“He’ll bring back a rottweiler,” Bruce sighs._

_“Maybe.”_

_“You really won’t at least suggest that…”_

_“Nope! I made him a promise. I intend to keep it. He’s untrusting enough as it is,” Dick says. “Oh, and you’re welcome.”_

_“Hm.”_

_“I’ll take that as ‘thank you, Dick, you saved me’,” Dick laughs. “Dinner is ready, by the way.”_

_“Thanks.”_

_That night, Bruce dreams about his house being invaded by over a hundred dalmatians._

_Compared to that, the puppy that he meets when he returns is not so bad. Not even when he learns that it’s a Great Dane._

_\--_

“Wait… What?” 

“You heard me.” 

Dick did hear Jason, but he doesn’t really believe what he heard. “What the hell do you mean, you’re going to Florida with Roy and Kory?” 

“I mean exactly what I said. I don’t think I could be any more clear,” Jason says. “He’s not coming back. I need a break from… all this.” He gestures around vaguely. 

“You need a break from your family?” Dick asks. 

“Yes!” Jason exclaims. “I do! It’s been almost a month, I need… I have to think about something else for just a few days!”

“But you can’t…” 

“Why? Why can’t I? I’m 18! You can’t tell me what to do!” Jason yells. 

Dick feels lost. On one hand, Jason is right, he can’t tell him what to do. On the other hand, letting Jason go to Florida when he’s clearly not in a state in which Dick would feel comfortable with the idea just feels… so wrong. 

“I just don’t think it’s a good idea,” he settles on saying. 

“Why? Because you need to control everything all the time?” 

“No, that’s…” 

“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to do here. You’re trying to be a dad,” Jason interrupts Dick. “But guess what. _None of us fucking want you to_!”

The room falls silent. Tim, who’s sitting in the corner of the couch with his laptop, looks like wants to shrink away. Damian’s shaking like he’s ready to punch Jason. Wally looks awkwardly between the two brothers, obviously wanting to defend Dick but not knowing if that is his place. 

“Yeah. We want you to butt the fuck out of our business! So what if Tim still wants to look for him? Just let Damian destroy all the ugly vases he wants, who the fuck cares?” 

“I care!” Dick snaps then. “I care because I care about all three of you and I want…” 

“To control us?”

“No! I… I need you to be safe. I need you to be healthy and…” 

“Well, I need you to mind your own fucking business and leave me alone!” Jason yells out before storming off. He doesn’t go upstairs but instead heads for the front door and before Dick can call out to protest, Jason slams it shut behind him. 

“Babe?” Wally says carefully after a few seconds. “You okay?” 

“No,” Dick answers honestly, shakily. “This is such a mess.” 

“Jason was being a childish imbecile,” Damian says. “You should pay him no mind.”

“I don’t mind that you butt in,” Tim says quietly. “Most of the time at least. But I know you mean well even when I do mind.” 

“Thanks,” Dick says. “I can’t stop him,” he adds. “I know I can’t.” 

Wally places a kiss on his temple. Dick closes his eyes, trying desperately to soak comfort from the soft touch. 

They go about their day pretending that the only thing amiss is the glaring, Bruce shaped hole that is always present. Later, Tim suggests a movie night and Damian says: “For once your idea is not completely idiotic,” and Dick takes this as their joint attempt to cheer him up. He accepts it and so they pile up in the movie room with a ridiculous amount of popcorn and cookies. When no one else suggests anything else, Tim puts in Star Wars. 

Dick’s not sure what time it is when Jason appears into the movie room in sweats and a T-shirt that may have once been Dick’s. Damian is asleep with his head in Dick’s lap and his legs trapping Wally onto the couch. Wally acknowledges Jason with a quick smile before turning his attention back to the movie. Dick can see that he is tense, though, ready to step in if the yelling starts again. Tim lifts up his tablet just enough to hide his face but Dick knows he’s ready to jump in, too, if necessary. 

Jason, however, doesn’t say anything. He stands in the doorway for a moment before taking a step, another, towards the couch. His eyes are on Dick as if waiting for Dick to protest. Dick forces himself to keep completely still, quite aware how his brother is prone to take any sort of reaction as a negative one. 

Slowly, Jason makes his way to the couch. He sits down next to Dick and folds his arms. Dick allows himself to relax slightly but he can’t keep his focus on the movie anymore. He plays with Damian’s hair to give himself something to do. 

The movie is almost finished when Jason suddenly moves. He closes the distance between himself and Dick and Dick’s heart does a flip in his chest when Jason puts his head on Dick’s shoulder. 

“Sorry.” 

Dick’s eyes burn. “Me, too,” he whispers. 

Tim’s appears from behind his tablet. Wally squeezes Dick’s shoulder. Damian lets out a little huff that suggests he wasn’t as asleep as Dick thought. 

Jason relaxes and for a moment, Dick’s world is not so broken. 

\--

_“Don’t make me regret this.”_

_He is so going to regret this._

_It’s the first time he has all the boys with him. In order to avoid too much hassle, he has opted to fly Wayne Force One (god damnit with Dick and his nicknames). It takes exactly half an hour of flying for Bruce to accept that even flying private won’t save him from hassle when his four sons are in a rather tight space all at once._

_As soon as the seatbelt sign turns off, Damian is in the cockpit telling the pilots how to do their jobs. Bruce makes a mental note to give them both an extra bonus after this trip. Tim, bless him, has curled into his chair with a laptop, tapping away with a new project._

_Dick and Jason have started what looks like a peanut war._

_“Boys!” Bruce snaps when a peanut hits his forehead. “Can you please just…?”_ _  
__His sentence is interrupted when Jason manages to flick a peanut right into his mouth. He coughs a bit, surprised, while Jason cheers and Dick whoops as if they’ve just scored a winning touchdown._

_“Nice one, Jay!” Dick praises his brother. “Let me try.”_

_“Seriously, can y…”_

_Dick’s peanut hits him on the chin. “Almost!” Dick laughs._

_“You are acting like a child,” Damian says when he appears from the cockpit, apparently satisfied that he’s educated the pilots enough._

_“It’s my last year as a teen. I’m allowed to be a little childish.”_

_When yet another peanut hits Bruce, he’s inclined to disagree. Instead, he opens a bag of peanuts himself and throws a whole handful at his two oldest sons._

_He writes a nice bonus check for the cleanup crew as well._

_\--_

Eventually, Dick has to go back to work. 

Tim understands. Damian doesn’t.

Damian throws such a tantrum that for a while, Dick doesn’t think he’ll ever forgive him for this ‘ultimate betrayal’. Then, in a moment of desperation, he tells Damian (and Titus) that he can come live with him. 

Damian calms down. Tim stops talking to him. 

Dick wants to offer this option to them both but he and Wally only have one spare bedroom and the two boys will not share. He tries to get Tim to listen, to explain, but Tim stubbornly stays in his room and doesn’t come out until Dick, Wally, and Damian leave. 

Dick calls him every day. Texts him when he doesn’t pick up. He asks Jason to talk to him but Jason doesn’t get him to listen, either. 

A week goes by. Then two. Dick visits the Manor whenever he can but Tim refuses to open his door. 

After three weeks, Dick is ready to kick it open but doesn’t. 

He’s back at the Manor again. After almost half an hour of begging Tim to come out and talk, he goes back downstairs and slumps onto the couch. Damian is outside trying to get his seemingly tireless Great Dane to tire out. The youngest, at least, seems a little more like himself these days. 

Dick sighs. Everything aches and somehow, he’s also numb. 

He’s so, so tired. 

He doesn’t realize he’s closed his eyes until he opens them when he hears footsteps. He assumes at first that it’s either Alfred or Damian and sits up straight when he sees Tim. Tim looks awkward and still a little angry but there’s also… regret, maybe, in his expression.

“Explain then,” he says and Dick wants to cry. 

“I don’t love Damian any more than I love you,” he says right away. “I swear, I don’t. I know it… might seem that way.” 

“It does,” Tim says. 

“I know. And I’m so sorry about that. I’m so sorry for all of this, I never… I never meant to hurt you. I know I did.” 

“So why did you do it?” Tim asks. 

“I don’t know if you noticed but Damian…” Dick quickly makes sure Damian’s still playing with Titus. “...Damian was… spiraling. I know we all are, one way or another, but he was… violent again. Not towards us but…” 

“The roses,” Tim cuts him off. “And the vases.” 

“And his pillows. The books in Bruce’s library, too, although he didn’t rip them apart, thank goodness.” 

This is clearly new information to Tim, who looks surprised. 

“I don’t say this to sound superior, because I know it’s not always a good thing, but out of the four of us, I’m the most comfortable with… emotion.” 

“To say the least,” Tim almost laughs. 

“Yeah. I’m ashamed to say I panicked a little when I tried to get him to calm down but I realized, later, that I may be the best one to guide him away from those bad habits of his. I don’t want him to get hurt or hurt you. I get that you feel left you behind but I swear, I’ll be here whenever you need me, okay? I’m just a phone call, always. Night or day,” Dick says. 

Tim sighs deeply and comes to sit on the couch next to Dick. “Why couldn’t you tell me all this in your texts? Or when you were pleading behind my door?“

“I wanted to talk to you face to face. So you’d know I wasn’t lying.”

If Tim had been thinking of an argument, he doesn’t say it. He turns to look out to the yard, where Damian and Titus are engaged in some form of a wrestling match. “I guess… I guess it’s true that Damian doesn’t really have anyone but us,” he says slowly. “Maybe Jon and Raven but… they’re still kids, too. It’s no wonder he lost it when you said you were leaving.” 

“Yeah,” Dick says. “This is only temporary anyway.” 

“Oh?” 

“If…” _When_. “...Bruce is declared… dead. I become your legal guardian.”

“Wait… Really?” 

“Yup,” Dick says. “Wally and I are already looking for either a bigger apartment in Blüdhaven or better yet, jobs in Gotham. I don’t like the idea of leaving Alfred alone.” 

“Me, neither.” 

“Mm.” 

“You could have told me that, at least. I may have forgiven you sooner and we could have talked.” 

Dick smiles. It’s a weak, small smile, but a real one. “I’m forgiven?” 

“Sure, yeah. Being mad at you is exhausting.”

Dick laughs and engulfs Tim into a hug before Tim can dodge it. 

“It’s so weird,” Tim says into Dick’s shoulder. 

“What is?”

“I don’t want him to be dead. But I sort of want him to be declared dead.” 

If only for closure, Dick wants that, too. 

\--

_“Bruce, this is a vacation.”_

_“I know, I just have to…”_

_“No. Put the laptop away and come to the beach. I swear the sun has forgotten what you look like,” Dick says and pushes Bruce’s laptop closed, ignoring Bruce’s half-assed protest. “Come on. A few days of leisure won’t kill you.”_

_“That’s a bold statement, given who I’m vacationing with.”_   
_  
Dick slaps him on the arm. “You survived the flight.”_

_“Barely.”_

_“You’ll survive the beach,” Dick continues over Bruce. He guides Bruce out of the hotel room and to the lobby where Jason, Tim, and Damian are waiting._

_“Finally!” Jason exclaims. “Are you allergic to relaxation or something?”_

_“Very funny,” Bruce says._

_“Come on, y’all! Beach awaiting!” Dick says and leads the whole family out of the hotel room._

_It’s not the sun, or the waves, and definitely not the sand that help Bruce relax. It’s watching his four boys act their age, chasing each other around, laughing, competing and at one point, attempting to prank each other. Jason and Tim bury Bruce’s legs into the sand while Dick takes Damian to find seashells. Jason eats the biggest ice cream cone Bruce has ever even seen. Damian becomes annoyed at all the trash littered on the beach and starts to make a pile. Bruce would tell him to take it easy if it wasn’t apparent that Damian actually enjoys it._

_They are all utterly exhausted and opt for room service once they are back in their rooms. As they eat their dinners while watching TV, Bruce decides that if these few days of vacation end up killing him, it will be worth it._

_\--_

It happens on a seemingly random morning. 

He’s the last to wake up which, in itself, is a rare occurrence. It’s gloomy, but not quite raining. Jason, Tim, Damian are already having breakfast by the time he stumbles into the kitchen. Wally’s there, too, but clearly ready to leave for work. Dick gives him a quick kiss before sitting down. Alfred is there the next second, pouring him a glass of orange juice. Dick thanks him and reaches for the pancakes. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Alfred turn to where Bruce would sit, the pitcher tilted as if he’s about to pour another glass. He realizes his mistake quickly and retreats, and suddenly, Dick can’t breathe. 

“Oh God…” 

He stumbles up and bolts back upstairs. At some point, his brain decides he won’t make it to his own room so he yanks Bruce’s door open and hurries to the bathroom. He sinks on his knees next to the toilet and heaves but there’s barely anything to come out. 

He feels a hand on his back and recognizes Wally’s touch before he hears his boyfriend’s soothing voice. “He’s not coming back,” Dick sobs out. “Oh God, he’s really not coming back.” 

“I’m sorry, Dick. I’m so, so sorry.” 

And Dick cries for the first time since he got that first phone call from Lucius. He cries in frustration and grief and anger and everything else he’s kept walled up somewhere inside him in an attempt to keep himself from falling apart completely. 

At some point, Wally guides him out of the bathroom. When they sit down, Dick realizes he hasn’t been in Bruce’s room once since he went missing. The bed is cold and it makes Dick cry harder. 

“I’m here, babe,” Wally murmurs into his hair. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.” 

Bruce had said that, too. In this very bed, after a nightmare. 

Dick doesn’t know how long they’ve been sitting there when his brothers join them. Damian cuddles under his arm, Jason comes to sit behind him to lean on his back and Tim takes the spot between his legs on the floor. Tim, at least, is crying, too. If the other two are, they keep their tears private and Dick allows them that. 

Out of these broken pieces, Dick thinks, he has to build their family up again. 

\--

_“So,” Dick starts as he sits down on the chair in front of Bruce’s desk. “What’s up?”_

_Bruce closes the lid of his laptop. “Let’s start with ‘how are you’?” he says, folding his hands._

_“Fine,” Dick replies. “Busy. You know, the usual,” he continues with a shrug._

_“And Wally?”_

_“Okay, whoa,” Dick chuckles. “Now I know something is really up.”_

_“What do you mean?”_

_“You never call him Wally. It’s always Wallace.”_

_“That’s not…”_

_“Bruce. It’s fine. I know it’s your subtle way to intimidate him. It’s unnecessary but I find it more funny than annoying. He’s also almost not scared of you anymore,” Dick says. “And he’s fine, too, thank you for asking. Great, actually.”_

_“You’ve been together for, what? Seven years now?”_

_“Going on eight.”_

_“Ever talk about marriage?”_

_Dick frowns. “Occasionally. We’re not in a hurry but we’re… headed that way.”_

_“Kids?”_

_“All right, seriously, what’s this about?” Dick says. “You don’t stall, especially not by chatting with me about my relationship. What’s going on? You have an orphan somewhere that you want us to take care of?”_

_Instead of answering right away, Bruce opens one of his drawers and takes out a leather binder. Dick has seen it before, and his frown deepens._

_“I’m updating my will,” Bruce says._

_“Okay?”_

_“I need your approval before I send it to my lawyers.”_

_Dick blinks. “Why?”_

_“Alfred’s getting old.”_

_“No, he’s not,” Dick denies right away. Bruce gives me a look. “Okay, yeah. Maybe. So, what? You need me to look after your finances in case of your untimely death? Because honestly, I think Tim would…”_

_“I need you to look after the boys.”_

_Dick pauses. Stares. Opens his mouth, closes it. Finally, he clears his throat. “Wait, what?”_

_“You are all legally my children so the state would probably leave them under your care anyway. Putting it in my will just makes things more straight-forward.”_

_“That’s not… I mean… Bruce, you’d… you would trust me with them?” Dick asks._

_“Why wouldn’t I?”_

_“They’re your children, like you said.”_

_“You’re my child, too.”_

_“Yeah, yes, but… Bruce, they…”_

_“You are one of the very few people I’d trust to take care of them. What’s more, you are one of the only two people they’d trust to take care of them.”_

_Dick can’t come up with an argument to that. “Have you told them?”_

_“Jason said he wouldn’t need a guardian. Apparently, he doesn’t need one even now,” Bruce says. His tone is fond. “Damian said that, too.”_

_“Sounds about right.”_

_“Do you agree, then?” Bruce asks._

_“Sure,” Dick shrugs. “I can look after the rugrats. It’s not like you’re planning on dying anytime soon, anyway. Right?”_

_Bruce chuckles. “Right. Of course not.”_

_\--_

Dick gets a phone call from Lucius at 11:45 PM and his world starts spinning again. 

He thinks he’s dreaming, at first. Doesn’t believe it and says that out loud. 

Then it’s Bruce on the phone. Dick sits up so fast he hits his head and ouch, he is not dreaming. Wally stirs next to him. 

“Dad?” he chokes out. 

“ _Yeah, chum. It’s me._ ”

For a long while, Dick can’t say anything. He just listens to Bruce ramble assurances as he tries to put his thoughts together. 

Less than 24 hours later, he’s on the Manor’s front steps waiting for Alfred to bring Bruce home. Damian is practically vibrating, Jason can’t sit still and for once, Tim doesn’t have his laptop or pad with him. 

When they see the headlights, it’s as if time slows down. 

When the car stops, it’s as if all sounds disappear. 

When Bruce steps out, it’s as if Dick’s watching it through a fog. 

He moves first. He is, after all, the most comfortable with emotions. He wants to be careful, mindful of injuries, but his body is not listening, so desperate for those strong familiar arms. Those strong, familiar arms that wrap around him instantly and hold him close. 

Then Tim is there, too. And then Jason and finally, Damian. 

“Dad…” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Stay safe!


End file.
